I’ve always been keen on innovation - perhaps too keen, as occasionally new becomes trifling rather than mainstream. Watching the influence of competitive fly fishing overseas and the evolution in fly tackle spawning from Czech nymphing, is largely unnoticed by US anglers.

While we fiddle with the fly patterns, there’s a quiet evolution in leaders, rods, and hooks taking place without our participation.

I’ve always been a long rod fan, the additional reach offered by rods longer than 10 feet, offers a number of welcome advantages; longer roll casts, the ability to mend more line, holding more line above the water rather than in the current, longer casts, and the extra reach when using either Czech or “HighSticking” nymphing styles.

It hell to string a rod in midcurrent, but we should’ve done that on the bank anyways.

Hardy is following Modern Fly of Italy in introducing the Marksman 10′ for #4 - and with the today’s lighter, higher modulus graphite should be able to avoid the “willowy” action of older graphite rods, and have crispness available to set the hook on the deep nymph.

As our lads return home it’s likely one of our US vendors will start filling the breach and introduce the 10′ and 11′ light line rods currently dominating the European circuit and Fips-Mouche.

In between grumbling about how “fly fishing is no place for competitive sports,” don’t be surprised when next year’s catalogs tout “extra length” as the latest revolution. Rod makers insist on obsolescing your equipment each year so they can sell you more - it’s the other unwelcome facet of our sport.

Southwick Associates the statistical shock troops used by many in the industry decreed the venerable Orvis Company is the “number one choice among fly fishing fans.”

A representative sample of 16000 anglers suggests the Shakespeare Ugly Stik and Orvis are the large fish in a small pond of rod makers.

However, if cost plays a deciding role among users of conventional fishing tackle, the same is not true of fly fishing fans. Of all fly rod purchases, Orvis was number one. Orvis also sold the most fishing flies — and you should know that Orvis is not a bargain basement operation.

I’m not so sure about the bargain basement mention, seems to me that shoveling the rods through a different door may be just that. I would have assumed Sage was the most popular, but then again, there’s no telling with statistics.

In either case, as long as I’m able to score their tackle at one third retail, they’ve got my vote. Us Brownliners are known for tantrums - we’ll attempt to impale a recalcitrant fish if needs be, and the Shakespeare Ugly Stick is virtually indestructible.

Orvis rods are a bit more fragile - so we sand the “R” off the grip and claim we paid full retail ….

No morals, few scruples, loose standards … and unapologetic.

At least they’ve published a guide for guys to get them on without tearing them, from the angler’s perspective - that’s a start.

Back in the day, when the defacto wader was Seal Dri’s, I remember my buddies coyly hiding behind the truck as they donned pantyhose. It was unsettling, but layers were the only thing that allowed you to stand in icy water more than 20 minutes; pantyhose, followed by thermals, then pants, then those thin latex waders.

I was lucky enough not to have to grapple with transgender, as my brother had equipped us with O’Neil neoprene drysuits.

I figure this is where them 5% of anglers we lost over the last decade went, not sure whether they’re smarter than us or merely made of sugar, but I could embrace “manscara”eyeliner and “mancake” foundation - if they had a DEET base, and an SPF of 15 or greater.

If it repelled mosquitos and protected me from the elements, with a fitting that attached to my float tube pump, so I could apply mass quantities to large fleshy sensitive areas, why wouldn’t we embrace the change?

It may alter the parking lot ritual a dab, but so long as we can skip deodorant, we’d be happy, right?

For them as are not from California, and are recoiling in terror, relax. All you have to do is swear before you say certain words..

“Bob, pass me the %$#@ corn starch, these %$#@@ pantyhose are chafing hell out of me.”

A split bamboo rod for less than the cost of a graphite?

One of those odd finds that you stumble on quite by accident, a handsome looking rod featured in an photo, and curiosity leads you to look up the maker.

Wild Creek Rods, of Australian origin and a small entrepreneur, but the rods are handsome and the costs are very reasonable. Only four models are available, but it’s still a neat find.

$489 US for any of the rods featured ($525AU), plus postage. Seven models of graphite are also available, for about $237 US.

I’ve been struggling with the need to update my aging float tube, now I’m glad I waited.

The eighties version surrounded the angler in a donut of inflation - with little fear of slipping out of the beast accidentally. The latest tubes offer the open front - which aids an awkward entrance and exit ritual, but takes a little getting used to for us water averse types.

Leave it to Coleman to come up with what’s really needed, complete with ”integrated cup holder”, it has all the safety features necessary to make me feel … drowsy…

All that’s needed is an inflatable remote and we can forget about that lawn entirely.

Skipping the fishing to go straight to the catching part sounds potentially cheaper, but the virtual odds sound much too realistic to be a cost savings.

I don’t think you’ll want to leave your cell phone lying around; $10 for three casts approximates the cost of fly fishing, but the idea that your kid could pizzle away your entire paycheck, worse yet, could win two or three hundred pounds of fish should cause you to blanch.

The game — called “Ippon Zuri” (which means “pole-and-line fishing”) — was created by FIT, a Fukuoka-based system development company who teamed up with a local seafood wholesaler. Game play is simple: players use the phone keys to cast bait to promising-looking fish in the game’s virtual waters, which include sea bream, crab, and other seasonal fish. When a fish takes the bait, the player is sent to a slot machine screen where, if luck prevails and 3 numbers line up appropriately, the virtual fish is hooked and reeled in. A message is then relayed to the wholesaler, who picks up the real-world equivalent from the local seafood market and delivers it, whole and raw, to the player’s doorstep.

Hardened anglers will balk at the slot machine segment, decrying that fishing could ever compare with any game of chance. I’m not so sure that fading light and tiny naturals isn’t exactly that - chancy at best to pick the correct fly and even less of seeing it to set the hook.

They tried the live action version on those Internet deer hunting sites, I’m guessing the webcam flavor can’t be far behind.

Fish and Fly has posted the recipe for the “coiled strike indicator” in their follow-on to “Fishing the Frontier.” Singlebarbed reader, “Z Fisher” was correct in his description of the process; boiled Stren, wrapped around a Cutip, then frozen to make the coils permanent.

Anything that requires fiddling with cooking pots and slopping things onto the kitchen floor has to work in our book - that way the resulting bruises are worth it.

I’m guessing this is proof positive that only the fishing part is bad for you; the financial drain, societal shunning, and the debris field of destroyed relationships aren’t cited - so only fishing causes those..

We’ve always known wading is a punishing exercise, now everyone will be stomping life out of invertebrates to “feel the burn.”

The design combines the unique benefits of exercising in water with a stylish treadmill. This results in exceptional levels of health, fitness and wellbeing.

What’s lost on the designers is the adrenalin surge of sliding towards deep water complements of worn felt or missing cleats, or the aerobic upper body workout as your grip on that tree limb falters, and Class 3 white water beckons.

That’s not “wellbeing” but any brush with Death certainly makes the living sweeter.

Dust off your ascot and meerschaum, admittance to the “cane fraternity” is only pennies away. Then again, it may take a few decades for you to really appreciate the simplicity and elegance, giving you time to gather the appropriate accoutrements.

At $39.95 for the base model, comes with #8 line and appears to have as much tip flex as an axe handle. A little on the drab side, but the addition of a large arbor reel stuffed with day-glo backing should add measurably to the appeal.

With nearly 800 lightning fires popping in California this week, I didn’t have time to do anything other than answer the pager, hoping vainly that I would be able to sleep at some point.

Sleep wasn’t in the cards, but in between tasks I was able to track down the source of the European competition rods mentioned in the Fish and Fly article of last week.

Modern Flies of Italy appears to be one of the vendors. The “Lamina” referenced in the articles only turned up reels from the BFR (British Fly Reel) company, additional sleuthing yielded the above vendor.

I always check the fly section just to see what’s in vogue on other continents, but the rods looked most worthy.

Current exchange rate is 1.56 dollars per Euro, in case you’re interested.

Bear with me, more lightning is due Wednesday so I’ll be less able to post. Those contemplating a weekend trip to the mountains should consult both fire maps and road closures, as much of Northern California is under some sort of restriction.

Current fire maps are available at the USGS fire planning tool. You may want to check the boundaries to see what’s burned over, or about to..

Them “blueliners” over at the Trout Underground have chosen to flee the state, leaving us pedestrian Brownliner’s to defend life and property.